Residents in Clermiston demand action from Edinburgh council to prevent travellers taking over park

Concerned residents living near Drumbrae Park in Clermiston say they have had a ‘terrible time’ with travellers who in past years have turned the park into a dumping ground and left piles of rubbish and waste which took weeks to clean up.

Each year up to 20 caravans have arrived at the site and locals took to social media last year to highlight the problems with fly-tipping and littering, and also said groups of travellers had confronted residents living nearby. The issue was raised in Westminster last year by local MP Christine Jardine.

Concerned local resident Peter, 74, said two caravans have already been spotted in the area this year and he is calling on the City of Edinburgh Council to take action to ensure residents don’t face similar challenges for another year.

Travellers have returned to a regular Edinburgh stop-off earlier than normal this year, with two caravans appearing at Drumbrae Park next to Drumbrae Leisure Centre in Clermiston at the weekend. | Submitted

“It’s a pretty obvious problem. The travellers come here every year now, probably for at least the last seven or eight years. Ever since the council took the goal posts down on the fields. When the goal posts were there it was a sports field so the travellers were moved on,” said Peter.

“Now it’s an open space and every year we are blighted by travellers. They come here at the start of summer and are allowed to stay for a couple of weeks at a time. But last year they stayed for two weeks, moved round the block for about two hours then came back to stay for three weeks.

“It took the council six weeks to clean up the mess last summer. They hid it in the woods and there was a real mess after they left. The smell was terrible. They dumped everything and anything last year.”

He added that there were run-ins involving locals and the travellers which saw the police have to be called.

“Last year it was so bad that locals stood cheering when they finally left, but the mess was so bad that the park was out of use for the eight weeks of summer,” said Peter.

“The travellers have a right to move around, but not to fly-tip, leave a mess and cause problems and generally upset local people. Residents living next to the field have a terrible time every summer with travellers.”

Peter and other residents are calling on the council to find another space for the travellers to stay which won’t disturb or upset local people.

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“The council has an obligation to provide a space for the travellers. I worked in the council 25 years ago and I was included in discussions about this back then, but the council is reluctant to release land for this problem, when they are looking for sites for needed new homes,” he said.

He added: “I suggested that the council put in barriers but they came back to say they have no intention of doing that at all. The council also say they can’t do anything to deal with the travellers parking at parks and open spaces used by the public. People are pulling their hair out.

“We want to do something now before they appear in much bigger numbers this summer. Ideally the council would put up barriers at the park. Surely that’s more cost effective for tax payers than spending probably more to clean up the mess every year.

“I think the people of Clermiston are being sat on with this and being ignored. I know a lot of local residents have written to the council, so they are well aware of this issue and the community’s disappointment. “

The City of Edinburgh Council has been approached for comment.